SOURCE: Las Vegas Sun

He hasn't publicized his role until this week, but veteran sports book operator Art Manteris has served as a consultant to the NBA on a variety of issues regarding Las Vegas sports betting since 1998.

The link between Manteris and the league came to light after NBA Commissioner David Stern spoke to reporters about the federal investigation into allegations that referee Tim Donaghy bet on and fixed games in the past two seasons.

Manteris, who has 29 years of experience in the state's race and sports book industry, thinks an enhanced level of cooperation between Nevada and the major sports leagues, including the NCAA, could help avert potential scandals and ensure the games are kept as clean as possible.

"I don't see a downside to it," said Manteris, vice president of race and sports book operations for Station Casinos Inc. "Protecting the integrity of sports is vital to the Nevada gaming industry."

Throughout his career as a gaming executive, Manteris has preached that the interests of Nevada's sports book directors and oddsmakers are aligned with those of officials of the major sports leagues. For either side, any illicit manipulation of a sporting event's outcome, even a hint of impropriety, could have catastrophic results.

That's why Manteris empathized with Stern as the commissioner addressed the Donaghy situation on national TV from New York on Tuesday.

"The look on Stern's face said more to me than the words he was saying," Manteris said. "I felt a sickening feeling in my stomach.

"I knew this was almost a worst-case scenario for him. I cringe every time this type of subject comes up."

It's unfortunate that the message espoused by Manteris - open communication aids the leagues and their fans as well as the oddsmakers and bettors - has not entirely reached its intended audience. In the case of some anti-gambling politicians, it's as if they don't even want to be educated on the issue.

For instance, Manteris recalls the effort to work with NCAA officials several years ago, when a bill that would have outlawed betting on college sports in Nevada was still kicking around Congress.

Instead of embracing the opportunity to gather information from the state's legal sports books, NCAA leaders sought to distance themselves from Nevada.

"We did not have a good experience with the NCAA the last time around," Manteris said. "They cast us in a negative light. They looked at it as an adversarial relationship."

Later, Manteris got hold of what he called a "Dear Colleague" letter that had made the rounds among the nation's esteemed elected representatives that was filled with inaccuracies.

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